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Accolades

“This is good news for Massachusetts wine enthusiasts, who will now be able to purchase wines they currently don’t have access to,” said Robert Dwyer of Wellesley, who blogs about wine. “This is also good news for Massachusetts in general since it will mean new revenues.”

"Robert P. Dwyer of Wellesley, who blogs about wine at thewww.wellesleywinepress.com, calls the state’s liquor laws bizarre and favors a wider availability of wine. For consumers, it would be more convenient to be able to buy wine at a supermarket while shopping for food, he said."

“You have this strange exclusion of wine, which in Europe is considered a grocery item,” said Mr. Dwyer. “Here it’s considered the demon rum.”

"trying to predict the annual Wine of the Year is a popular parlor game among enophiles. This year, blogger Wellesley Wine Press held a contest, with New York wine retailer Grapes the Wine Co. awarding a prize of a Kindle Fire e-reader to the first commenter to correctly guess this year's top wine before it was announced. Unfiltered was impressed with the number of Top 10 wines prognosticated by Wellesley's readers. "Senelwine" guessed Château de St.-Cosme Gigondas 2009, our No. 10 wine, "Mike M" guessed Quinta do Vallado Touriga Nacional Douro 2008, our No. 7 wine, "James Z" guessed Baer Ursa Columbia Valley 2008, our No. 6 wine, and "RichardPF" nailed it, winning the Kindle, and the respect of his wine-loving peers. Looks like Wellesley's readers know their wine."

The Chicago Tribune's Bill Daley mentioned the site in Rosé: A wine for more seasons. I said "For me, they're like pumpkin spice coffee drinks: best enjoyed early in the season". Bill alsogave the site a shout-out for a piece the Capitol Case Clubcontributed about restaurant wine service. I thought it was a great example of how print wine writers can effectively engage wine bloggers.

The Boston Globe's website has been linking to my recent entries as part of their expanded local coverage includingWellesley. I truly appreciate that as it has driven a lot of local traffic to this site.

It was really nice of Thomas Matthews, Executive Editor of Wine Spectator to leave a comment and then check back and answer some questions I had. Awesome guy! Check it out here. And here.

Thanks to The Boston Globe for including The Wellesley Wine Press in their list of local blogs in the Food & Drink section. Check it out here.

The Wellesley Wine Press was just added tohttp://wine.alltop.com. Alltop is an interesting topical take on sorting through the best sites on the Internet- check it out and see which sites are listed for topics you're most interested in.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

New Zealand is an exciting wine region and a promising area to explore for value hunters. In addition to their notable Sauvignon Blancs, they're producing excellent Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in addition to Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurtztraminer. I had a chance to taste through 3 wines from Forrest Wines over the course of a week. My notes are below.

2008 The Doctors' Riesling Marlborough
20,000 cases produced
8.5% alcohol
$17.99My Notes:
I don't think I've ever seen a wine label so spot-on in its description: "Lime sorbet and juicy green apples...some lovely sweetness balanced by the fine acidity..." Indeed. This was the first of the 3 bottles I tried and I was on a major Riesling kick at the time. Comparing this wine to (what else) a German Riesling, this one didn't quite have the density or "zing" that my favorite Germans bring.
A touch of sweetness for sure, which I liked, but more flavor and weight and I would have enjoyed it more. Still, a very enjoyable bottle.87 Points WWP: Very Good

2008 Forrest Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough
1,500 cases produced
13.5% alcohol
$17.99My Notes:
Okay, now we're on to a grape variety that New Zealand has done very well with. Although the classic New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc delivers intense, pungent aromas, this wine showed restraint. In discussing this wine via E-mail with Trevor Loomis from Forrest Wines, he described the wine as one that bucks the trend in New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs and goes for a more Loire Valley style wine. Yeah- I can see that. I could easily mistake this for a Sancerre blind. Very clean, nice acidity, and enjoyable citrus aromas and flavors. Really nice stuff.89 Points WWP: Very Good

2007 Forrest Pinot Noir Marlborough
3,000 cases produced
14% alcohol
$23.99My Notes:
I'm thinking of going on a New Zealand Pinot Noir kick after trying this (and other wines) recently. If I tasted this wine blind and had to guess whether it was from Burgundy, California or Oregon I'd likely guess Oregon. It's lower in acidity and more full-bodied that red Burgundy, yet it brings enjoyable mushroom/forrest floor aromatics that I really enjoy. I don't find these characteristics in most California Pinot Noirs I've tried.
I would have rated this one a little higher if it delivered more flavor, but what I tasted I liked very much.88 Points WWP: Very Good